TORONTO, Ont. – About 150 truckers roared into Queen’s Park Sept. 8 armed with picket signs to protest wait times at Canadian National’s (CN) Brampton Intermodal Terminal (BIT).

Carloads of truckers and a few bob-tailed tractors circled Queen’s Park Avenue at about 1:30 p.m. Monday afternoon before parking around the circle to take to the steps of the legislature.

Police were on hand to ensure a peaceful and responsible demonstration.

City drivers who move containers from the CN yard get paid by the move, not by the hour, but truckers claim they wait at BIT, the largest terminal in the area, for upwards of six to eight hours to pick up one container.

The drivers had been protesting at the BIT for six days, but hoped demonstrating downtown would gain media and public attention. They did manage to attract the attention of passersby, as well as a local television station, which sent a cameraman.

Container Carriers Owner/Operators Association of Ontario’s (CCOOAO) president, Abdi Nasir Yusuf, was happy that so many of his fellow drivers showed up to support the effort at Queen’s Park.

The demonstration lasted about an hour, then picketers returned to the BIT to continue demonstrating there.